LANTIAN MAN

Lantian also spelled Lan-t'ien, hominid species identified on the basis of fossils found in 1963 and 1964 by Chinese archaeologists at two sites in Lan-t'ien district, Shensi province, China. One specimen was found at each site: a cranium (skullcap) at Kung-wang-ling (Gongwangling) and a mandible (lower jaw) at Ch'en-chia-wo (Chenjiawo). Both fossils have been classified as female. The remains are believed to be about 600,000 years old, or as old as Java man, an early form of Homo erectus, and older than Peking man, another form. The cranial capacity of 780 cubic cm (48 cubic inches) also indicates its resemblance to the small-brained Java man. Named by its discoverers Sinanthropus lantianensis, Lantian man is classified by most scholars as Homo erectus. Stone implements from a third site in Lan-t'ien may be contemporary with the fossils.